Jerusalem Construction ‘a Drop in the Ocean’

City representative welcomes 200 new housing units, but says, ‘I would be happy if it were 8,000.’

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Maayana Miskin, 13/08/13 08:51

Jerusalem

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The decision to allow construction projects in Jerusalem neighborhoods east and south of the 1949 armistice line is a good one, says Attorney Herzl Yehezkel, a city representative from the neighborhood of Homat Shmuel.

However, he told Arutz Sheva, Jerusalem’s fast-growing population needs far more housing than the few hundred units that will be built.

“I would be happy if they were building 8,000 units instead of 800,” he said. “The little bit that they are marketing is merely a drop in the ocean.”

“They’re only marketing 200 apartments in Homat Shmuel and I hope that in the next stage we’ll build 900 new units in that neighborhood,” he added.

Yehezkel also spoke of his feelings of excitement upon becoming a city council member. “Something new really is starting," he said, paraphrasing Bayit Yehudi's election slogan. "I feel like a loyal servant to the holy nation."

“I know the Jerusalem municipality, I’ve been active for the past decade as the head of the [Homat Shmuel] community council. So the halls of the city council are not new to me,” he continued. “I’m excited to serve in the parliament of the capital of the Jewish nation – that’s not something to take for granted.”

Yehezkel recently took over from Councilman Yair Gabbai, who left his seat as a Bayit Yehudi (Jewish Home) council member after joining the Likud.